Former Countrywide Loan Officer and Former Corrections Officer Convicted on Mortgage Fraud Charges On Friday, April 18th, two men were convicted for their roles in an extensive mortgage fraud scheme that included the fraudulent purchase of over 40 properties in New Haven, Connecticut. Andrew Constantinou, of Unionville, Connecticut, and Jacques Kelly, of Poughkeepsie, New York, were convicted on all federal charges after a three-week trial, including conspiracy to commit mail, wire, and bank fraud. The jury also found Kelly guilty of one … [Read more...]
Allstate Awarded $3.8 Million in RICO Trial
April 28, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Allstate Insurance Awarded $3.8 Million in Trial Against RICO Violators After a 6-week jury trial, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas ruled that defendants in a RICO violations trial would pay $3.8 million to Allstate, whom they defrauded. The jury found Michael Kent Plambeck, D.C., Jennifer Giessner, Douglas Friedman, Randal Toca, and other persons and entities guilty of racketeering, in violation of the Federal Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), and the Ohio Corrupt Practices … [Read more...]
Charleston Man Hit with Federal Charges for Drink Refill
April 24, 2014 by Leave a Comment
N. Charleston Resident Faces Federal Charges of Theft for $0.89 Drink Refill A North Charleston man working as a construction worker at a federal building has been hit with federal charges for theft of property after unintentionally neglecting to pay for his $0.89 drink refill. While Christopher Lewis was working on-site at the VA Medical Center in Downtown Charleston, he went on his lunch break and decided to grab a drink refill. However, he did not realize that refills were not free, and now faces federal charges for “theft of government … [Read more...]
Leland Yee Pleads Not Guilty to Wire Fraud Charges
April 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Former California State Senator Leland Yee Pleads Not Guilty to Wire Fraud Charges Former California State Senator Leland Yee was arrested on federal corruption charges on March 26th after a 5-year investigation into his campaign financing, which led to charges of wire fraud, bribery, public corruption, and arms trafficking. On Tuesday, April 8th, Yee appeared in federal court in San Francisco and finally pleaded not guilty to the charges. His plea had been expected for over a week, although he appeared in court for a previous arraignment … [Read more...]
Leland Yee, 28 Others, Indicted on Federal Corruption Charges
April 10, 2014 by Leave a Comment
California State Senator Leland Yee and 28 Codefendants Officially Indicted on Federal Corruption Charges On April 4th, a federal grand jury officially indicted 29 suspects, including the now notorious California state senator Leland Yee, on federal corruption charges. Yee was arrested by the FBI on March 26th after a five-year federal investigation into potential campaign corruption. According to the 137-page federal indictment, Yee has been accused of wire fraud for accepting bribes from undercover agents in an attempt to sway … [Read more...]
Charlotte Mayor Charged with Bribery, Extortion
April 1, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Charlotte Mayor Charged by FBI for Bribery, Extortion Charlotte, North Carolina’s mayor Patrick Cannon has been in office for less than 6 months, but after an FBI investigation, he was arrested on charges of bribery and extortion. Reportedly, Cannon accepted $48,000 in bribes from undercover FBI agents posing as businessmen who wanted to work in the booming North Carolina city. Cannon submitted his resignation letter on Wednesday as well. "I hereby give notice of my resignation from the position of the Mayor of the City of Charlotte, … [Read more...]
Local Felony Lane Gang Leader Gets Bond
March 31, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Florida-Based Felony Lane Gang Leader Out on Bond Last October, 8 members of the nationally notorious Felony Lane Gang were arrested in South Carolina, according to Sheriff Leon Lott. The south-east branch of the group was based on Florida, and the members were charged with breaking into vehicles, stealing checks, IDs, and credit and debit cards, in order to commit bank fraud. The gang received its name because members would pull up to drive-through tellers in the lane furthest away from the teller’s window, so they could not be visually … [Read more...]
White Supremacist Pleads Guilty to RICO Charges
March 13, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Leader of Aryan Nation Pleads Guilty to RICO Charges The leader of the Aryan Brotherhood in Texas has pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy, or RICO, charges that included murder, kidnapping, and drug trafficking. On Friday, March 7th, Larry Max Bryan, who goes by the nickname “Slick,” pleaded guilty to RICO charges in federal court in Houston. He faces up to 25 years in prison for his crimes. According to the RICO filings, he orchestrated several crimes from prison. The 52-year-old RICO suspect has spent all but 5 years of his adult … [Read more...]
Jonathan Pinson Kickback Trial Delayed
March 12, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Federal Kickback Trial for Jonathan Pinson and Associates Delayed Until June The federal kickback and corruption trial involving the former board chairman of South Carolina State University has been delayed until at least June of this year due to a document error. Reportedly, several thousand pages of documents were not delivered to the defense. The trial has been pushed back to at least June 5th to allow defense attorneys to review the documents. The federal kickback and corruption trial, involving allegations against Jonathan Pinson … [Read more...]
“Real Housewives” Couple Pleads Guilty to Mail Fraud, Other Charges
March 7, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Couple from “Real Housewives of New Jersey” Pleads Guilty Mail Fraud, Tax Fraud Husband and wife Teresa and Giuseppe "Joe" Giudice, cast members from “The Real Housewives of New Jersey,” pleaded guilty in federal court on Tuesday, March 4th, to charges including bankruptcy fraud and mail fraud. Teresa faces up to 27 months in prison, while her husband Joe faces up to 46 months in prison, for the federal charges. Last year, the couple pleaded not guilty to a laundry list of federal charges including bank fraud, wire fraud, and bankruptcy … [Read more...]
